Finding UGC creators at scale

UGC stands for user-generated content — creator-made videos and photos you use as your own marketing, chiefly as paid ads, rather than relying on the creator's reach. If that's your goal, you're hunting for a different thing in Discovery: people who make great content, regardless of follower count.

A 3,000-follower creator with sharp, on-brand video can be worth more than a 300,000-follower one whose content you can't reuse. UGC creators often take product-only or lower-fee deals, and the asset goes into your ad account where it outlives the campaign — so they stretch a lean budget far further than a single big post.

For UGC, judge production quality and format fit, not reach. Look for clean lighting, clear audio, steady framing, and creators who already post the format that sells your product — reviews, demos, unboxings. Follower count is the last thing you look at, not the first.

1. Run the same five sources, but weight toward smaller, content-first creators.
2. Scan their feed for production quality and the right format.
3. Tag these rows "UGC" in your tracker so you can route them to product-only or flat-fee content deals later.
4. Note whether they mention being open to UGC or brand work in their bio.

Example: a supplement brand needs ad creative. They shortlist eight nano creators who post crisp morning-routine videos, ignore follower count entirely, and sign them on product-only deals. The resulting clips run as paid ads for months — far cheaper than a single macro post that would have lived and died in one feed.

• Filtering UGC creators out for low follower counts — that's the wrong metric here.
• Forgetting to confirm usage rights for ads later (you'll need them; see Negotiation).
• Accepting pretty content that doesn't show the product in use.

• Keep UGC candidates in the same tracker but clearly tagged, so deal terms don't get crossed.
• Prioritize creators whose existing posts already resemble the ad you want.
• Build a small bench of reliable UGC creators you can re-brief every month.

• UGC = content for your ads, not the creator's reach.
• Judge production quality and format fit; ignore follower count.
• Tag UGC candidates separately and plan for usage rights.

You now have a wide, mixed list of 30–50 creators. The next phase — Analysis & Vetting — cuts it down to the 10–15 worth contacting.